Help me blow $100 on Amazon

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adbuett

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Well, I have $65 in gift cards but would be willing to bump an extra $35 for something cool. I'll give a quick rundown of junk I already have, and then hope somebody comes up with something I just can't live without!

Two 44qt Bayou Classic SS kettles (complete sets of camlock'd fittings)
bayou banjo burner (one is enough until I decide to build a sculpture)
10gal HD mash tun with false bottom
25' counterflow chiller
DIY temp controlled fermentation chamber (might go for a heater coil for winter?)
More bottles than I can shake a stick at and a decent base-mount bottle capper (don't want to keg just yet)
Cereal Killer grain mill and a 50# bag of 2-row.

I was thinking about some sort of water filtration system, but am having a hell of a time sorting through all the junk amazon throws at you when searching for it. I figure water quality is probably the next logical step for me.

Any ideas? Please feel free to live vicariously through my windfall of brew-funds! Thanks,

Andrew
 
Refractomer can be had for less than 30. Good digital thermometer can be had for about the same. You can buy a lot of RO water at the grocery store for the cost of a filtration system.
 
Portable refractometer
PH meter
Erlenmeyer Flask
Spin bar
Spin plate
RV charcoal filter / RO filter
Pump for vourlaff and other needs
Digital 'instant read' thermometer
Grain storage tubs
Rolling racks
Custom bottle caps
Oak cask
Swing top bottles

That's way more than $100 so choose wisely.
 
Beverage hose w/ connectors for direct hot water connection & a hot water carbon filter.
Build your own stir plate. Several threads on HBT. You can do it for $20 or less.
Pump w/ ball valve
 
Primo R/O water costs 37 cents a gallon around here. At that price I can't justify putting a r/o system in my house, but if I had the money, I'd do it to save the hassle of getting water from the store. A better use of your Amazon fun money would be a PH meter, as someone mentioned above.
Getting involved with your water chemistry will make a more noticeable
difference in your beer than any gadget.
(EDIT)
On second thought a gadget that would be better than a PH meter would be a bedroom toy for you and the lady of the house....Telling her you spent your PH meter money on something to please her would be "priceless".....
 
Madscientist: HAHAHA, wouldn't be a surprise, though as my wife is the one with the Prime account!

I did forget to mention that I liberated a lab-grade stir/hot plate from the dead pile at work (lab). Just ended up having to rewire some connections that had gotten brittle and fouled up. I also have a 2L Erlenmeyer because I was sick of stealing pots from the kitchen for the mash tun preheat and priming sugar boil.


There are definitely some contenders listed here. I'm going to start doing some research and figure what I can get the most bang for my buck on: pH meter, refractometer, water filter, or a pump. I might end up sitting on the $100 for a month or so and up my investment. Thank you very much for all the great suggestions! I will be sure to post back when I've made the decision.
 
I vote for grain mill. You can start buying grain in bulk and save yourself $10/brew session. Refractometer and good thermometers I would put as #2 (or like #1.5) priority...
 
A grain mill and a corded drill to power it will save you money in the long run for sure, especially of you have a local club that does group buys. I can get 2 row for like $30 a sack that way, making it incredibly inexpensive to brew
 
Definitely a good list. I'll throw one out there...if you have access to a natural gas line where you brew, you can convert to natural gas and rid yourself of propane. I just did this (already had a natural gas line on my patio) and it rocked. Heat was just fine and brought my wort to a boil quicker than my old propane turkey fryer. Might be able to do this and have some money left over.
 
Primo R/O water costs 37 cents a gallon around here. At that price I can't justify putting a r/o system in my house, but if I had the money, I'd do it to save the hassle of getting water from the store.

I agree with the Mad Man. Simple water filtration at the end of the garden hose is cheap, but an RO system is pricey .. especially one with a 10 gallon tank.

On second thought a gadget that would be better than a PH meter would be a bedroom toy for you and the lady of the house....Telling her you spent your PH meter money on something to please her would be "priceless".....

You mean like a new backgammon board?
 
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